In settings where tables frequently need to be transferred between use and storage or from one use location to another, such as institutional settings, it is desirable to have mobile folding tables that are quickly convertible between a stationary, unfolded configuration for use and a mobile, folded configuration for movement and storage. As the table top sections of a mobile folding table can be quite heavy, lift assisting mechanisms which may be, for example, pressurized gas cylinders and/or torsion bars, are typically employed to assist a user in lifting the table top into a folded configuration. During movement and storage of the table, it is also advantageous to automatically retain the table top in a fully folded configuration so that the table remains compact. However, if the force provided by the lift-assisting mechanism is alone great enough to retain the table top in a fully folded configuration against the weight of the table top and/or other unintended forces, it may be unduly difficult for a user to oppose the lift-assisting force to unfold the table for use.
From present attempts to address this problem, it is known to employ a passive locking mechanism to retain the table in a fully folded configuration. Typically, the locking mechanism is selectively disengageable by a user applying a relatively small transverse force, allowing the table top to be lowered into an unfolded configuration. When the table is in the folded configuration and the locking mechanism is engaged, the engaged components of the mechanism are often located a considerable distance below the table center, to provide enough leverage to avoid undue stresses on the locking mechanism. However, it has been found that a locking mechanism located substantially below the folded table center is awkward to reach and thus difficult to disengage while at the same time controlling the lowering of the table into an unfolded position. This awkward operation unduly inconveniences and could risk injuring a table user.
A need therefore exists for a mobile folding table that can be comfortably and safely disengaged from a folded and locked configuration and lowered into an unfolded configuration for use.